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Convergence and Transmedia Storytelling A Wiki
http://www.cracked.com/article_19346_the-5-most-insane-alternate-reality-games_p2.html The Dark Knight -- The Dark Knight ARG Perhaps the most unusual thing about the massive The Dark Knight viral marketing campaign is that the film didn't need viral marketing. This is a movie about Batman and the Joker. Even if it had no advertising at all, it still would have become one of the highest-grossing films of all time ( Harry Potter be damned). This didn't stop them from creating the most extensive and insane ARG ever made. Getty "My primary motivation as a filmmaker? I'd have to say 'fucking with people.'" The game took off with a bang when, during the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con, people found "Jokerized" $1 bills that led them to whysoserious.com, a page advertising jobs for Joker henchmen. Those eager to be repeatedly punched by costumed vigilantes and/or murdered by their own boss were instructed to be at a certain spot near the convention center at 10:00 a.m. the next day. Upon going there at the allotted time, players discovered a phone number ... written in the sky. "Don't call that, dude -- it's probably Goatse." Calling the number prompted a recording of a whimpering man being forced to read instructions for what came next: a scavenger hunt. The fans at Comic-Con were then painted with Joker makeup and sent off to find clues throughout San Diego, having to cooperate with those online in order to solve additional puzzles at the website. At the end of the day, the online players were rewarded with the first ever trailer for The Dark Knight, while back in the real world one lucky winner was selected to be taken away by mobsters and "killed" in place of the Joker. Via Batman.wikibruce.com But wait, why would the mob want to kill the Joker? Because the game took place before the events of The Dark Knight and right after Batman Begins, bridging the gap between the two movies by showing events like the rise of the Joker, Harvey Dent's campaign for District Attorney and Jim Gordon's attempts to weed out the bad elements in Gotham's police department. Players took on the role of the Joker's lackeys, whose jobs basically consisted of finding clues and solving intricate puzzles. One scavenger hunt told players to go out and take pictures of themselves dressed as the Joker while standing near a famous world monument, or to send the ones they already had, if they were lunatics. Those who submitted pictures were later mailed actual copies of a Gotham City newspaper, which revealed a dozen more fake websites within its pages. Another time, the Joker sent the players to 22 different bakeries all over the country to pick up cakes that had cellphones stuffed inside them. Why? Because he's the Joker, that's why. This went on for over a year, by the way, and each puzzle would change the website in some way or reveal a new bit of information about the film. Via batman.wikibruce.com Like the fact that the people who made it were out of their goddamned minds. Just when it looked like the ARG was going to be entirely devoted to the Joker, one puzzle that involved hacking a website was intercepted by Lieutenant Gordon, who coerced the players into cooperating with the police. These players were then commissioned to participate in a secret operation to track down 30 corrupt cops -- apparently they missed a few, though, because a corrupt cop working with Gordon was actually a huge plot point in The Dark Knight. Meanwhile, Harvey Dent was elected District Attorney with the help of the players who joined his campaign, but we imagine that this part of the game was slightly less exciting than the Joker henchman/police informant side. Via Toysrevil.blogspot.com "We can pretend to be people who give a shit about politics!" The game ended when, a week before the movie's release, every single site involved in the ARG was vandalized by the Joker and his mad hacker skills. One final puzzle revealed a website that allowed players to receive free tickets to early IMAX screenings of The Dark Knight on a first come-first served basis, while those with Joker cellphones were personally invited through their emails. At this point the players must have been completely surprised to find out that the movie was actually about some dude named "Batman" or something. Read more: The 5 Most Insane Alternate Reality Games | Cracked.com http://www.cracked.com/article_19346_the-5-most-insane-alternate-reality-games_p2.html#ixzz2BSGA279B http://www.theblackhelix.com/ KEYWORDS AND DEFINITIONS http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/funding/allmedia/definitions.aspx Henry Jenkins Henry Jenkins is one of the most productive and influential film and media scholars in the world. His books and articles have been major contributions to existing fields of inquiry such as film history (What Made Pistachio Nuts?)Early Sound Comedy and the Vaudeville. Loads of presentations on transmedia storytelling Examples and visual explanations of transmedia. http://www.slideshare.net/ivanaskwith/transmedia-and-advertising#btnNext TRANSMEDIA STORYTELLING MAPS http://www.jillgolick.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/transmedia-storytelling.jpg http://www.flickr.com/photos/garyhayes/4013418390/sizes/o/in/photostream/ ''How Transmedia Storytelling is Changing TV'' Until now, media companies have focused on getting audiences to watch shows “live” via a TV set, where the bulk of advertising dollars are. But transmedia storytelling — which is defined as telling a story that extends across multiple media platforms (for television, it’s going beyond the on-air show) — has the ability to upend that. “Transmedia” is one of those hot buzz words du jour, with &tabid=29548& conferences, articles and trend reports devoted to it. Yet it’s not a new concept. Star Wars, The Matrix, Dr. Who and Pokeman all expanded beyond their core franchise decades ago — to games, books and alternative realities. SEE ALSO: The Future of Social TV [VIDEO] In today’s digital era, there are new factors at play that make transmedia a potentially potent game-changer for how TV content is created. Think about it: Social TV has made television a richer two-way experience with fan participation. Nielsen’s own research shows how social TV amplifies the conversation and impacts ratings. Technology has created tools that allow the user to interact and gamify content as never before (location-based, virtual goods, augmented reality, QR codes, etc). Fans’ familiarity with and desire to experience TV content across devices other than TV has exploded. The ability to efficiently create affordable, participatory storytelling vehicles that go beyond being “bonus extras” and spreading it through different circulation channels is changing the rules and creating a potential value proposition too big to ignore. As the forefather of transmedia storytelling, USC Professor Henry Jenkins, likes to say, “If it doesn’t spread, it’s dead.” Beyond the Second Screen Taking advantage of this new reality is imperative for my network, both from an engagement and value perspective. We see transmedia storytelling as our next must-do in the evolution of TV, and have recently delved into our first campaign with the show Top Chef. As contestants are eliminated, they discover their journey isn’t over. Instead of going home, they will have a chance to compete in a companion digital series that will roll out each week after the on-air episode premieres. These online shows will give the eliminated contestants a chance to earn their way back into the broadcast finale. The digital series will directly impact the outcome of the on-air show. To experience the full dynamic of the competition, fans will be enticed to watch both TV and digital platforms. Our aim is to appeal to the Top Chef enthusiast with the deeper, more meaningful content they crave, as well as create discoverable online content that will pull casual fans into the fold. The goal is to flow content from platform to platform and to bring in the fans along the way — both the diehard and the casual. This is something that has not been possible until the scaled adoption of smartphones, tablets, social networks and gamification tools like Bunchball and GetGlue. By unifying elements with the common goal of driving engagement around this transmedia centerpiece, we’re setting out to prove that all metrics — ratings, traffic, and social buzz — will lift. We are not only trying to increase the value of the proposition in terms of engagement, but also in terms of ROI for our long-term sponsors. If we can prove that engagement and value is increased exponentially by integrating storytelling seamlessly across media platforms, we all win — fans, content creators, advertisers. My department at Bravo will no longer be “digital,” but official “multiplatform enablers” that are seamlessly porting storytelling content wherever it best fits and wherever the best value proposition is derived from. More Innovation Ahead TV is on the cusp of a transmedia revolution, and there are many interesting experiments in the works. Syfy has a show coming out called Defiance where a story is told on TV and in a video game: different cities with shared characters and events. Tim Kring, one of the modern day pioneers of transmedia with his work on Heroes and Conspiracy for Good, is producing Touch for 2012. Here’s hoping that Fox embraces his rabble-rousing transmedia tendencies. The next, as yet unachieved milestone in transmedia is collaborative social storytelling, where fans themselves can further the plot in a pervasive, meaningful way. Smart media companies will look for ways to go beyond the “walled garden” model and turn their fans into ultimate brand ambassadors. Whether transmedia is the new norm is still to be determined, but one can easily make the case that in today’s fragmented media landscape, it will be a must for TV to survive. Perhaps the future of TV isn’t either traditional television or digital platforms, but in collective intelligence — the feedback loop of the in-between. PERSONAL EFFECTS: DARK ART - MULTIMEDIA NOVEL http://jchutchins.net/site/personal-effects/ =Personal Effects= http://jchutchins.net/site/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/pe_da1.jpgWatch videos featuring renowned thriller and horror storytellers — including the creators of The Blair Witch Project, Friday the 13th and Final Destination — and their praise for Personal Effects: Dark Art. Click here. J.C. Hutchins’ supernatural thriller, Personal Effects: Dark Art is now available in bookstores and for purchase online. Publisher’s Weekly called the novel a “stellar first.”Library Journal said Personal Effects “may herald the future of modern fiction.” Personal Effects: Dark Art follows the extensive notes of art therapist Zach Taylor’s investigation into the life and madness of Martin Grace, an accused serial killer who claims to have foreseen, but not caused, his victims’ deaths. Zach’s investigations start with interviews and art sessions, but then take him far from the hospital grounds — and often very far from the reality that we know. The items among Grace’s personal effects are the keys to understanding his haunted past, and finding the terrifying truth Grace hoped to keep buried. Dark Art combines the experience of a traditional thriller novel with a multimedia-fueled “out of book” narrative. Clues in the novel — and items that come with the novel, such as ID cards and photos — propel readers into an online experience where they become protagonists themselves…. *Call the phone numbers: You’ll get a character’s voicemail. *Google the characters and institutions in the text: You’ll find real websites. *Examine the art and other printed artifacts included inside the cover: If you pay attention, you’ll find more information than the characters themselves discover. Personal Effects: Dark Art is the ultimate in voyeuristic storytelling, representing a revolutionary step forward in changing the way people interact with novels. ---- Praise for Personal Effects: Dark Art “This is the future of storytelling, and it’s a thrilling ride.” –Anthony E. Zuiker, Creator/Executive Producer of the CSI: franchise “Effects: Dark Art will linger in your thoughts, challenge your sense of self, and transform every benign shadow into something to fear.” –Daniel Myrick, co-writer/director of The Blair Witch Project “A rocking genre-mash that mixes mystery with psychodrama and serves it up in a high-bandwidth torrent of terror.” –Scott Sigler, author of Infected and Contagious “So compelling is the journey, … readers may scarcely recognize their own transformation from passive to active, as they pick up where the text subsides and become the protagonist.” –Gore Verbinski, director of Pirates of the Caribbean and The Ring “(I)mpossible to put down … Terrifying, steeped in dread and populated with vibrant and complex characters, Personal Effects: Dark Art plunges you in to a hidden world of supernatural intrigue. It’s a journey you won’t soon forget.” –Jeffrey Reddick, writer of Final Destination “In The Handbook of Fiction Writing, under ‘Page Turner,’ you’ll find Personal Effects: Dark Art … If you’re any kind of reader at all, you won’t quit until you get to the end.” –Victor Miller, writer of Friday the 13th “Don’t worry about the lap bar. It won’t save you from screaming on this ride.” –Patrick Lussier, director of My Bloody Valentine 3D, White Noise 2, and editor of the Scream trilogy “A journey of discovery and fear that readers simply must experience for themselves.” –David Wellington, author of Monster Island, 13 Bullets and Vampire Zero “This book is alive with energy, and it’s creepy as hell.” –Jeremy Robinson, author of Antarktos Rising and Kronos “A bloody puzzle. A bloodier mindtrip. … Steel yourself before stepping on its maniacal path.” –Matt Wallace, Parsec Award-winning author of The Next Fix ---- Meet the creator of Personal Effects: Dark Art Personal Effects is the creation of Jordan Weisman, one of the fathers of the Alternate Reality Game storytelling genre. In 2001, Jordan worked with Steven Spielberg to promote his film A.I. using this viral storytelling technique, and has since created many ARGs such as “I Love Bees” for the release of Halo 2, and more recently contributed to 42 Entertainment’s (the company that he founded in 2003) ARGs for Nine Inch Nails’Year Zero and The Dark Knight film. Weisman is a living legend in the gaming community. Transmedia Storytelling website http://www.tstoryteller.com/ <<